Ch.352Side Story 1 – Journey to the Southern Continent (7)

Creeeeak.

The tavern door opened with a squeak.

I glanced at Jena sitting under the dim lighting.

It was a small tavern, quieter than before, with a low and heavy atmosphere.

There weren’t many people, and most were focused solely on emptying their glasses.

I sighed and sat down across from her.

‘Why did she call me here?’

The reason for moving here was simple.

Jena suddenly stood up, walked out without saying anything, and when I followed her, she headed straight here without looking back.

As if the destination had been decided from the beginning.

And now, she was silently drinking, tilting her glass.

Without a single word of explanation.

‘I followed her here, but…’

Honestly, I was too curious about the reason.

Why did she use transformation leather to choose me, an ugly man, instead of the handsome Jawil Wilson?

I wondered if she had some other intention.

Like that.

Despite following her out of curiosity, she was drinking as if I didn’t even exist.

Unable to bear it any longer, I muttered.

“What are we doing here?”

Jena put down her glass with the same expressionless face.

The sound of the glass touching the table echoed clearly in the quiet tavern.

She still didn’t open her mouth, and my patience was starting to wear thin.

“Hah… You suddenly called me out here, but what exactly are we doing?”

Jena picked up her drink again.

However, this time she hesitated before taking a sip.

Her fingertips trembled slightly, and her pupils quivered subtly.

Then, as if nothing had happened, she spoke.

“Bella and Elduna don’t like you.”

“…What?”

I looked at Jena with an incredulous expression, but she continued speaking nonchalantly, as if she didn’t care.

“I also didn’t want to stay there any longer. I just thought you might enjoy drinking quietly too, so I brought you here.”

Shit.

What the hell is she saying?

Is this how ugly people are treated?

I barely managed to control my contorting expression.

I pressed my lips together, suppressing my nearly wavering emotions, and quietly picked up my glass.

In response, Jena also tilted her glass and took a sip without saying anything.

Right.

It is better to drink quietly than to be with Jawil Wilson.

Even if I had stayed there, I would have been drinking alone anyway.

Glug, glug.

It was quiet except for the sound of pouring and drinking.

In the small tavern where candlelight flickered.

Jena and I sat across from each other at the table, just drinking without conversation despite being alone.

“Aren’t you curious about anything?”

Jena broke the silence first after a long pause.

She raised her eyebrows slightly as she put down her glass.

“Curious about what?”

“Yes.”

I sighed briefly, not hiding my weariness.

“I already asked. Why you brought me here.”

“…”

“And I got an answer.”

I spoke calmly.

But as soon as those words ended, Jena’s face changed slightly.

A curious gaze.

Her eyes deepened subtly.

Her previously expressionless face seemed to have developed a small crack.

She tilted her head slightly and slowly rotated her glass with her fingertips.

“Does that mean you’re not curious about me?”

“Let’s just drink without talking to each other.”

She was just a drinking companion for one night anyway.

Just as I was about to enjoy this calm atmosphere rather than meaningless conversation—

“Do you like men, by any chance?”

At Jena’s words, the drink I was about to swallow got stuck in my throat.

And then, as I tried to breathe in hastily—

“—Pfft!”

The transparent liquid sprayed out of my mouth.

Droplets splashed onto the table, and I hurriedly wiped my mouth with the back of my hand.

“What did you say?”

“I asked if you like men.”

With the spilled alcohol still wet on the table, I opened my mouth with an agitated face.

“I have two wives!”

As soon as those words left my mouth, I realized my mistake.

But it was already too late.

Jena also paused momentarily.

However, she soon put down her glass quietly and raised the corner of her mouth.

“…What did you say? You have two wives, even though you’re not Selden Alphonse, the first to stop the Demonic Wave in the Eastern Continent and the hero who ended the war in the Western Continent?”

Jena’s tone carried a subtle interest, but I had no time to care about that.

The fact that I had already made a slip of the tongue filled my mind.

“Selden Alphonse isn’t the only one with two wives in this vast continent, is he?”

“He’s the most talked-about person these days. You’re not going to tell me one of your wives is the Imperial Princess, are you?”

Her tone was joking, but I felt cold sweat running down my spine.

A feeling of breathlessness.

Jena might have just thrown out a casual joke, but the problem was that her words hit the mark exactly.

I desperately tried to appear calm, but my lips momentarily dried up.

‘It would get complicated if I’m discovered.’

If it became known that I was wandering around the Southern Continent and rumors spread, it was obvious that my father and Emperor Malius would be furious about why I hadn’t come to see them during that time.

I cleared my throat forcefully and tried to catch my breath.

“Ahem…!!”

I covered my mouth with my hand, trying somehow to maintain a relaxed attitude, but Jena’s lips still wore a mischievous smile.

“I know. That you’re not Selden Alphonse.”

“…What?”

“I’ve heard about Selden Alphonse’s appearance. He not only proceeded with marriage to the Imperial Princesses of the Eastern Continent simultaneously, but rumor has it that even the Western Continent’s Princess has taken a liking to him.”

“Wh-what kind of strange rumor is that…”

“If you’re not Selden Alphonse, why are you getting so upset?”

“…I came from the Eastern Continent, so I know well, and I’ve never heard such rumors.”

Jena’s face remained calm, as if she had really asked the question without any particular thought.

She picked up her glass and slowly moistened her lips, smiling faintly as she brushed her mouth.

“You’re going hunting with Bella and Elduna tomorrow, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“It would be better if you and your friend didn’t come to the hunt tomorrow.”

“…What?”

Tap.

The sound of the glass being placed on the table echoed softly.

Jena was wearing a slightly different expression than before.

The playfulness hadn’t completely disappeared, but compared to earlier, she looked much more serious.

“Have you heard of the ‘Black Fang Group’ in the Southern Continent?”

As a reader of the novel, I naturally knew about this organization.

The Black Fang Group.

A notorious mercenary group operating in the Southern Continent.

However, they weren’t just simple mercenaries, but a group that hunted other mercenaries.

They gained notoriety by concealing daggers or poison in their clothes, approaching as if they were comrades and then ambushing, or by luring other mercenaries to dangerous areas under the guise of hunting and leaving them to die.

But wait.

In the original work, the Black Fang Group was completely annihilated by Serion Lycus, so how could they still be active?

Or perhaps something has been twisted due to my intervention.

I put on a somewhat cold expression.

“I’ve heard of them. But why are you suddenly bringing up the Black Fang Group?”

Jena took a small breath and tapped the table with her finger.

“Elduna and Bella… and me included, all three of us belong to the Black Fang Group.”

“…What?”

For a moment, the air froze.

Jena continued speaking with a still calm face, as if she had anticipated this reaction.

“Do you know what our mission is?”

“What is it?”

She picked up her glass again, but this time she didn’t drink.

She simply rolled it in her hand.

And soon, she raised the corner of her mouth as if it was nothing.

“To seduce men and lure them to hunting grounds.”

I tilted my head at Jena’s words.

“Then why are you telling me this?”

“You said you have two wives. If you have a family, you should at least avoid a dog’s death, shouldn’t you?”

“If you care so much about others, why are you in the Black Fang Group?”

“My younger sibling is being held hostage.”

“Y-your sibling is being held hostage?!”

Seeing my reaction, Jena seemed to realize her mistake and immediately hardened her expression.

“…I think I’ve had too much to drink today.”

Jena hurriedly stood up, and her chair scraped back with a friction sound.

She roughly brushed back her disheveled hair, pretending as if nothing had happened.

“Anyway, don’t come to the hunt tomorrow. If you don’t want to die.”

Jena’s voice became indifferent again.

Her attitude suggested that what she had just said was a mistake, and she didn’t want to talk about that subject anymore.

Then she turned and started walking away.

But.

When she reached the door, Jena suddenly stopped and turned her head.

Under the dim lighting, her expression was subtly wavering.

“And…”

Jena hesitated for a very brief moment before continuing.

“In front of me, you’re the first person to honestly say you have a wife even though you’re married. Even if it might be a lie told out of pride—”

A brief silence.

Jena slowly lowered her eyes and left with a bitter smile, opening the door.

I held the glass alone in my hand.

And then, raising the corner of my mouth, I muttered softly.

“This… tomorrow’s goblin hunt is going to be interesting…”